Safe houses and satellite phone calls expose Mexican drug lord
- 9 years ago
Originally published on February 24, 2014
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Mexican and U.S. authorities have released more details concerning the 13-year-long investigation that led to the arrest of drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman on Saturday.
Several dozen Mexican marines surrounded the 11-story Miramar hotel in Mazatlan before 4:00 a.m., according to the Los Angeles Times. Guzman was sound asleep when Mexican troops broke into his hotel. A woman whose identity has not been confirmed was with him at that time. Some media outlets reported that it was his girlfriend, while others said it was his wife, beauty queen Emma Coronel. Guzman had placed an AK-47 beside his bed but did not have time to grab it before he was subdued by Mexican marines.
By 6:30 a.m., four men, three women and a baby had been taken into custody alongside Guzman.
The discovery of a network of safe houses in Culiacan was an important step in arresting Guzman, the leader of the Sinaloa cartel who achieved legendary status after successfully escaping from a prison in Jalisco state almost 13 years ago. According to CNN, Guzman had at least seven safe houses, each with steel-reinforced doors and hidden tunnels. Some of these tunnels were connected to the city's sewage system.
Guzman made a fatal error that resulted in his downfall: He sought help to escape by making calls on a satellite phone from a tunnel. The signals enabled officials to triangulate his whereabouts, Reuters reported.
The drug lord was detained in an underground cell at the Altiplano prison, a maximum-security prison outside of Mexico City, on Sunday.
The U.S. had offered a $5 million bounty on Guzman and may seek his extradition.
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Mexican and U.S. authorities have released more details concerning the 13-year-long investigation that led to the arrest of drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman on Saturday.
Several dozen Mexican marines surrounded the 11-story Miramar hotel in Mazatlan before 4:00 a.m., according to the Los Angeles Times. Guzman was sound asleep when Mexican troops broke into his hotel. A woman whose identity has not been confirmed was with him at that time. Some media outlets reported that it was his girlfriend, while others said it was his wife, beauty queen Emma Coronel. Guzman had placed an AK-47 beside his bed but did not have time to grab it before he was subdued by Mexican marines.
By 6:30 a.m., four men, three women and a baby had been taken into custody alongside Guzman.
The discovery of a network of safe houses in Culiacan was an important step in arresting Guzman, the leader of the Sinaloa cartel who achieved legendary status after successfully escaping from a prison in Jalisco state almost 13 years ago. According to CNN, Guzman had at least seven safe houses, each with steel-reinforced doors and hidden tunnels. Some of these tunnels were connected to the city's sewage system.
Guzman made a fatal error that resulted in his downfall: He sought help to escape by making calls on a satellite phone from a tunnel. The signals enabled officials to triangulate his whereabouts, Reuters reported.
The drug lord was detained in an underground cell at the Altiplano prison, a maximum-security prison outside of Mexico City, on Sunday.
The U.S. had offered a $5 million bounty on Guzman and may seek his extradition.
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